I sold my car when I moved to New York City. The parking game and pocket busting insurance rates generate copious amounts of stress hormones.  As a result, many New Yorkers use the MTA bus/subway system. 

I support public transportation. I think the Eisenhower administration erred when they turned America into an interstate car nation rather than a national rail network nation. In a dying empire, working-class Americans choose between engine repairs and rent, car insurance and utility bills, and gas or groceries. Those with car notes live under the shadow of the repo man.   

However, as we say in Tao- ”this is this.” For me, “this” is the subway- at least at this juncture. 

For international and out-of-town tourists planning to use the subway during their Big Apple stay, I offer the following tips to enhance the quality of your trip and reduce the chances of a sad occurrence.  

I also include a correlative Tao mini-lesson with each safe-subway tip. Did you think I wouldn’t? 

The first New York City subway train ran on a 312-foot track and became operational in 1870. The first subway line began running in 1904. According to Google, 3.6 million people ride the subway every day.  

I think it’s pretty cool that for $2.90, you can get anywhere in NYC by subway or connecting bus. Some riders can’t make the fare and jump the turnstile. Some jump the turnstile for kicks, Others out of principle. 

The US sends hundreds of billions to the Ukraine-Zelenskyy money pit/meat grinder and apostate-Israel genocide machine. The Iraq War ran about 6 trillion. The 2008 banker bailout cost 29 trillion. I don’t lose sleep over subway fare dodgers. 

With the subway’s lower price point advantage comes some challenges. These tips should help minimize them. However, life contains risks, variables, and timeless winding channels of karma that can come at you like a Saturday night sucker punch, even with the most thorough precautions. Thus no guarantees. 

For over a decade, I’ve ridden the NYC subway from the proximal to the hinterlands, at all hours of day and night, without any “real issues.” At least up until this point.  

Any “problems” I encountered took place on street level, not fueled so much by my “debate opponents,” but more from the police, who frown on a citizen’s right to self defense. I don’t blame the cops. Most just want to stay alive and collect their paychecks and pensions, and thus run whatever program the owners’ write. I don’t even blame my “debate opponents,” as controlled scarcity capitalism was designed to screw them up.  

My subway experience comes from riding the Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and Bronx lines. I only took the Staten Island train once or twice, so I can’t really speak on it. While part of the MTA, from a practical standpoint, the SI line feels and looks different from the subway that runs through the other boroughs. Unless you have family or friends in SI, as a tourist, your only contact with that 5th borough anomaly will likely be through the Staten Island Ferry and its waterfront docking area. 

Prelude complete, I now present my 5 essential Tao subway riding tips. 

Number 1 Tao Subway Tip: Be courteous.

“Please,” “Excuse me,” and “Thank you” go a long way in the subway. I’ve watched too many brutal subway car bouts that started over an unacknowledged shoulder bump. 

Subway cars often make sudden jerky movements. A packed rush-hour car increases the chance of a bumping or shoe-stepping incident. If you accidentally bump someone, quickly turn to them and say “Excuse me” or “Sorry.” That diffuses most incidents. 

If someone accidentally bumps you without apology- let it go. 

There is a certain individual, let’s call him “shiny white sneaker man.”  Like staring into a white sun, his sneakers shine so bright and clean, it hurts your eyes to look at them. Yet he wears them in a dirty subway. If you accidentally step on his sneaker, he might smash your face in, regardless of apology. 

If you defile his shiny white sneaker, immediately apologize while keeping a subtle eye on his facial expressions and hands. I don’t recommend cleaning the smudge off his sneaker with your pocket tissue, as this could further enrage him. If it goes down, go hard on your end, because he wants revenge- for his sneaker and everything else.  

Don’t worry too much about that rare bird, as you won’t likely encounter him or hit the bad luck lottery of stepping on his sneaker.

 The takeaway is that courtesy promotes conflict avoidance, a prized attainment in Tao. When you get into it with someone, it diverts your energy from the bigger mission. That’s why the system is designed to jam people up with giant blobs of glue. 

Avoidable conflict could earn you a stay on Rikers Island or leave you with permanent neurological damage. 

“Pick your battles,” as they say. However, sometimes it comes at you. 

Number 2 Tao Subway Tip: Mind your business.

The MTA police advisement says: “If you see something, say something.”

Tao subway tip says: “If you see something, mind your business.” 

Once you involve yourself, you're involved. Think before taking that on. 

You might see a rider smoking crack, weed, or a cigarette in your subway car. Before you scold the crack smoker, ask yourself what state of mind a person is in who openly smokes crack in a subway car. Your “just say no” speech might be the “straw that broke the crack pipe’s stem,” i.e., he “just says yes” to plunging his concealed steak knife into your neck. 

Maybe a group of teens act rambunctious or plays loud music. Most are good kids. Let them experience a little joy and freedom before getting sucked into the machine. Also, getting jumped by a pack of legally protected minors with big bodies and undeveloped brains presents a tough predicament.  

You’re not the police, nor the hall monitor. 

Mind your business. 

Oh, and don’t sit next to a guy shooting up. If the train makes a hard stop, he could accidentally stick you. 

What if you see someone getting victimized? That depends on your code. If you follow your code and your code says go- then go. 

If your code is solid, you should have multiple programs to deal with such situations. 

Keep in mind that the NY District Attorney detests self-defense or the use of force to protect innocents. If you harm or kill an attacker, you will likely face criminal charges. New York jails and prisons are not pleasant places. 

Tread carefully, and make sure it’s worth it before taking action.  

A word of caution to those who run “damsel in distress” programs. If you encounter a man screaming at or threatening his girlfriend or wife, I advise staying out of it unless you’re convinced he’s going to hurt or kill her.  

He pays her bills or at least deals with the stress of her financial struggles. He probably has kids with her. He experiences her danger zone PMS. She’s going home with him, not you. They likely have a violent dysfunctional relationship and this might be typical behavior. 

If you tangle with him, odds are she jumps on your back and tries to claw your eyes out, or if the cops show up, swears on a stack of bibles that you started it.  

Conversely, if you encounter a woman calling her man f@gg!t this and f@gg!t that and or putting his personal business on blast, avoid making eye contact with him. He’s in the middle of an extreme public humiliation experience, and if he thinks you're looking at him some kind of way, he could take it out on you. 

As we enter the final stage of the Piscean Age (authoritarianism & controlled scarcity), the world becomes more violent and volatile. Don’t play busybody. Handle your stuff and don’t worry how the next guy runs his program, unless it directly impacts you or yours. 

You’re living in ‘Interesting/End Times.’ Not a time for petty games. If you stick around long enough, you’ll play the life and death game, whether you want to or not. It has its fun moments, but it’s also a serious game with high stakes and a low margin for error. 

As the collective insanity grows and simulations become simulations of simulations, many lose their minds. Keep your head tight and collect data from sources without absorbing their poison. Use your brain filter. 

For followers of Tao, minding your business means staying out of third-party drama. Choose associates wisely. Interact with strangers wisely. Mind your business.  

Number 3 Tao Subway Tip: Watch your Step.

The subway contains many stairwells. Stairs are generally metal coated. On rainy days the surface becomes slippery. Even in dry conditions, people die or sustain severe injuries in stairway slip-and-fall accidents. Take one step at a time. It’s a hard bumpy ride to the bottom.

A yellow caution strip lies at the subway platform’s edge. Stand behind the yellow line. Sometimes someone leans over and falls onto the tracks. Or drops their phone and jumps down to retrieve it. Sometimes someone pushes somebody into an oncoming train. Sometimes somebody jumps in front of an oncoming train of their own volition. 

Be aware of front and back. Check both sides from time to time. 

If your train or a train before yours strikes someone, exit ASAP and find an alternate route. MTA police investigations that involve train strikes take a while. 

If you fall or get pushed onto the tracks and you can’t scurry up the concrete embankment in time, there are impressions and metal pillars on the other side of the tracks you can wedge into. Just don’t touch the third rail. The third rail kills. 

Since we’re discussing “watching your step,” what about subway crime?

Stay situationally aware. Living in the “now” hinders surprise attacks.  

If a mugger presses you with no available exit, you have 2 basic options.

If you feel strong, make them earn it.   

If you feel weak, give it up. 

If they point a gun at your face, you should probably give it up, regardless of how you feel that day. 

As Master Po from KUNG FU said: “What is cowardice, but the body’s wisdom of its weakness.  What is bravery, but the body’s wisdom of its strength. The coward and the hero march together within every man. So to call one man coward and another brave, merely serves to indicate the possibilities of their achieving the opposite.” 

Self-defense/Self-preservation is an important Tao tenet. You have the right to defend yourself, as well as the right to remain alive. By following your code and running correct programs, you’ll be able to quickly process the cognitive-physical-spiritual pros & cons and take the best course of action.

Number 4 Tao Subway Tip: Get an Education.

You learn a lot riding the subway. For tourists, consider it part of your education/vacation. 

Many homeless people sleep in the subway. A university study said America's homeless population could be housed for 20 billion dollars. 

The owners don’t want to end homelessness. NYC is filled with blocks and blocks of empty commercial real estate that could be converted into living space. Poverty is big business for the owners and Black Rock wants everything. 

Also, the constant site of the homeless encourages workers to remain on the fishhooked dollar treadmill.  

There’s more than enough for everyone. This is controlled scarcity capitalism. 

Mentally ill people wander the subway- mostly homeless schizophrenics. They might approach you. 

I think some schizophrenics get stuck in para-perception dream (often nightmare) worlds or space-time memory holes. Dr. Gabor Maté says most mental illnesses are trauma-induced, even in utero. From my observation, the majority of subway schizophrenics appear to suffer from system trauma via homelessness, drug abuse, and the prison industrial complex. Extreme institutional and societal trauma breaks people. 

Regardless of etiology, through numerous encounters with raving subway schizophrenics, I’ve developed techniques to bring them into a state of temporary lucidity or at least calm them down. I make no claims on curing them, if they should be “cured” rather than sublimated, borrowing from the Tao and some of French weirdo-philosopher Michel Foucault’s writings on mental illness.  

The mistake many make, including cops, is they invalidate the schizophrenic’s “reality.” Better to go into their reality and then gradiently bring them into your “reality.” This takes clinical experience and practice, and is not recommended for the uninitiated tourist. Even seasoned subway clinicians can screw up and send things sideways. 

If a screaming subway schizophrenic approaches you, remain calm. Panic agitates them. They acutely sense and hyper-react to emotional frequencies, especially fear and anger. They respond well to a friendly smile. The vast majority of subway schizophrenics are harmless and won’t hurt you. In a rare case where one tries to grab you, run away, as it’s shameful to fight a mentally ill person. If you must fight, fight well, because some crazy guys possess crazy strength, but if possible, use restraint.  

As a subway safety aside, a similar yet different variation of the subway schizo is the aggressive subway drunk. One minute he’s fist-bumping you and saying “I love you bro” and the next he wants to beat your ass. Ten seconds later he’s all hugs and love again. Then back to anger. Getting cornered by one of these guys for even 5 minutes can be an exhausting experience. 

When the subway drunk’s pendulum swings to anger, move it back to love by staying in agreement and remaining calm and non-confrontational. Whether in the love or aggression phase, If he gets too far into your space, with a friendly demeanor, set your boundary and hold the mark. Otherwise, things could get out of hand. Most times he chills out or grows bored of you and starts harassing other passengers. 

Many hardcore drug addicts ride the subway. Fentanyl users lay in the middle of the subway car, oblivious to the people who step over them.

People self-medicate to the extreme in sick societies. Fix the systemic problems, alleviate the symptoms. The War on Drugs failed because it only addressed the symptoms. I support the decriminalization of all drugs. Drug addiction is a healthcare issue, not a police matter. 

What’s the owners’ solution? Flood the market with fentanyl and build more prisons. 

During the 1960s the CIA flooded American cities with heroin. In the 80s they imported cocaine to create the crack epidemic and fund the Contra wars. 

Now it’s fentanyl. Why? Because fentanyl kills more people. 

What’s the end game? Malthusian commoditized culling. Drug addiction, poverty, and prisons represent multi-trillion-dollar industries. 

Why invest in death and destruction? Because the international bankers run the game. We’re entering high-tech Peak Evil. During Peak Evil, devils rule. 

I don’t want you to think the NYC subway system is some kind of rolling madhouse. Most rides are uneventful journeys that take you from point A to point B. The majority of riders just want to get to their destination with minimal hassle. 

From an educational standpoint, this reveals much. Since most people want to get from point A to point B without a hassle, the owners could run programs without heavy repression. Create a society that offers meaningful work and purpose along with a decent standard of living and recreational activities. Replace the prison with the amusement park. Make the ride fun. 

In another Tao teaching example, the MTA tried to purchase subway cars from an American manufacturer but couldn’t find one company in the United States that could build them, so they ordered the cars from another country. What does that say about the future of the U.S. Anglo-Zionist Empire?

Number 5 Tao Subway Tip: Enjoy the Ride.

You’ll be entertained by crooners, subway pole dance teams whose flying sneakers miss your head by inches, panhandlers with stories, and rambling schizophrenics potentially tapped into para-dimensional dream (or nightmare) worlds. 

Be humble, and collect and process data from all encounters. It’s educational and often fun. Donate to the local entertainment when appropriate. Pulling your wallet out can lead to problems. The panhandler asks for a dollar, but after gazing into your opened wallet filled with 20s, wants to renegotiate. I recommend keeping loose singles in your pocket for such encounters. 

Whether traveling from point A to B, A to Z, or A to A- enjoy the ride. Games are supposed to be fun. From my viewpoint, Tao is the best game ever. It even works in the subway. However, you got to know when to go. 

To take artistic license with the novel/movie title- it’s “no subway for old men.” As well as “no city for old men.” And returning to the original title, “no country for old men,” or women, or anyone else outside the dome. 

I’m a Gen X old head. I like the subway, but as per entropy, at some point it becomes too much. Especially without a gun. 

I’m not advocating for the owners’ “law and order” approach, as that entails killer robot dogs, Black Rock goon squads, body scans, nanotechnology surveillance, detention camps, and Mark of the AI Beast chip codes. I’d rather take my chances with the muggers. Except NY’s owners hate non-compliant warriors who defend bodily autonomy, so that’s not really viable. At least until collapse. 

I could move to one of those gun-friendly red states and buy a car with a .50 caliber machine gun turret. Then I’d have the headache of car ownership. Anyway, gun-friendly states have their own pathologies. Ask their prisoners and Walmart employees. Some of the cul-de-sac folks haven’t figured it out yet. They will. Judgement Day’s coming. It’s all contaminated. 

For now, I swipe my metrocard through the turnstile. Or one day jump over it. You never know.